The State Board of Regents has selected David W. Pershing as the 15th president of the University of Utah. Pershing is currently the U's senior vice president of academic affairs. John Ashton, executive director of the U Alumni Association, welcomed the new president. "The Alumni Association board and staff have greatly appreciated the support of David Pershing over the last many years," Ashton said. "We very much look forward to working with him as he assumes his role as president of this great institution." Read more...

Campus Events

Dr. Abraham Verghese will present the 2011-12 Tanner Lecture on Human Values. His lecture on Feb. 16 at Kingsbury Hall will explore his roles as a physician and writer, the relationship of patients and physicians, and the bond between medicine and the humanities.

String theory: Brian Greene, one of the world's leading theoretical physicists, will deliver the Nature of Things 2012 lecture on Feb. 29.

Olympic memories: Revisit the 2002 Winter Olympic Games with an exhibit at the Marriott Library, Feb. 1-29.

Banff Film Festival: See the best in outdoor films featuring skiing, snowboarding, kayaking, hiking, mountain biking, and more at this annual event, Feb. 21-23.

Services

Member Benefit of the Month: Members of the U Alumni Association can join the Gastronomy Frequent Diner Program for free, and get a $20 gift certificate when you join. You can also earn points on the purchase of Gastronomy gift cards and on purchases.

Departments

Honor Roll: News from Alumni: Ed Catmull BS’69 PhD’74, president and cofounder of Pixar Animation Studios, has been named to deliver the University of Utah’s general commencement address in May, on the heels of seeing a U student film of his added to the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry.

Athletics

Utah's varsity athletics teams posted a 3.072 combined grade point average in the Fall Semester for the highest recorded GPA in University of Utah history. It marked the third semester in a row that Utah's teams combined for a 3.0 GPA or better, which is another school first.

Basketball Alumni: All Utah basketball alumni are invited to gather for Alumni Weekend on Feb. 17 and 18.

Skiing: The U's ski team was ranked No. 1 by Ski Racing after winning the Colorado and Denver invitationals.